Taipei: Taiwan and Israel have taken a significant step towards enhancing their bilateral economic and technological cooperation by signing two memorandums of understanding (MOUs) focused on intellectual property and expedited patent reviews. The agreements were finalized during a videoconference, marking a new phase in the collaboration between the two nations.

According to Focus Taiwan, the International Trade Administration under the Ministry of Economic Affairs announced that the agreements aim to optimize patent examination processes and bolster intellectual property protection. The Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) highlighted that the patent prosecution highway (PPH) agreement allows for accelerated examination of patent applications in one country following approval in the other. This initiative is set to commence on January 2nd of next year, with Israel being the eighth country to establish such a framework with Taiwan.

TIPO also mentioned that the second MOU focuses on intellectual property cooperation, emphasizing information sharing, professional exchanges, and initiatives to raise public awareness. The MOUs were signed by Abby Lee, Taiwan’s representative to Israel, and Maya Yaron from the Israeli Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei.

During the signing event, Deputy Economics Minister Cynthia Kiang addressed the ongoing global reassessment of supply chain security and resilience. She noted Israel’s robust startup ecosystem and its attractiveness to multinational companies for establishing R and D centers. In contrast, Taiwan is renowned for its advanced manufacturing technologies. Kiang emphasized that these complementary strengths could enhance supply chain collaboration in emerging technology sectors.

MOEA statistics reveal that bilateral trade between Taiwan and Israel reached USD 2.72 billion from January to October this year, representing a 38 percent increase compared to the same period last year. Currently, Israel ranks as Taiwan’s 28th-largest trading partner.